WASHINGTON, Feb. 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Jack Fitzgerald, business owner and founder of Americans Standing for the Simplification of the Estate Tax kicked off a legislative education series for the Center for Freedom and Prosperity for the 113^th Congress by leading a briefing on Capitol Hill yesterday about the ASSET solution to the estate tax.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130226/PH66410 )

"Leave it to a car dealer to boil it down to a math problem, but I'm glad to bring the ASSET estate tax solution to the forefront during the working groups on tax reform in Ways & Means," said Jack Fitzgerald.  "Forty percent is still a death sentence for many private businesses, and many owners will just liquidate, costing jobs, but you will never see an estate tax return.  That's not good for the economy."

Staff from more than thirty house offices attended Monday's briefing to learn more about how the ASSET proposal will prevent job losses.  "ASSET offers a way to save jobs that inevitably are lost when people sell out in anticipation of an estate tax," said Brian Garst from the Center for Freedom and Prosperity.  "We need ideas like ASSET on the estate tax for lawmakers to grow the economy."

ASSET advocates for a change in collection method for the estate tax that is transformative.  No jobs lost and the double taxation eliminated.

Will Dyess, founder of the Maryland Citizens Research Group that was started at the University of Maryland, explained the fiscal impact of the ASSET solution.  The study states that as the recovery continues and policy actions necessary to sustain the recovery are taken, the situation of the United States is evident. Deficit reduction is the only feasible means by which to return to long-term sustainable growth.  Short term aggregate demand will be negatively impacted with tax increases, but policy actions can be taken to minimize and even reverse some of the impacts. The ASSET proposal fulfills both of those roles with much efficiency. [1]

Alex Ayers from the Family Business Coalition also participated in the briefing describing the current state of the estate tax debate in Congress.

The ASSET coalition includes more than 3,000 supporters, including owners of private businesses, farm members and their employees, as well as groups such as the National Black Chamber of Commerce.

For more information on ASSET, visit www.SimplifyEstateTax.org.

[1] "The Economic Benefit of the ASSET Proposal" December 2012 Maryland Citizens Research Group

About Jack Fitzgerald:  In 1966, Jack Fitzgerald, a Washington native, opened his first dealership in Bethesda, Maryland.  Today, Jack Fitzgerald and Fitzgerald Auto Malls employ more than 1,200 people with 15 locations in three states.  Jack is known for his community support, consumer education, and grassroots activities, most notably with the Committee to Restore Dealer Rights (CRDR) for auto dealers.  In 2009, CRDR successfully secured enactment of legislation for shuttered Chrysler & GM Dealers and saving thousands of jobs.

About the Center for Freedom & Prosperity:  The Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation and the Center for Freedom and Prosperity seek to promote economic prosperity by advocating competitive markets and limited government. The CFP Foundation regularly sponsors and conducts discussion groups, panels, lectures and symposiums on key policy issues for the public, government leaders and other interested parties. 

SOURCE Americans Standing for the Simplification of the Estate Tax (ASSET)